First it was a new compact CD/cassette player, then a bigger color television and furniture for the apartment. Soon Pierre and his new wife, Juanita, were entangled in a web of ‘easy-payment plans’ that would take years to pay off.

Getting into the credit card trap can be avoided, but there is one Creditor with whom we must do business. We owe Him far more than we can afford to pay, yet He wants to completely clear our account if we agree to His terms. Let me explain. As a debtor, you are obligated to your creditor’s agreement. If your payments are late, it can ruin your credit record. If you refuse to pay, he can take you to court.

Likewise we are indebted to our Creator God to live by His rules, not our own. The problem is that by nature we are out of step with His plans and His laws. The Bible says that “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). One day we will stand before God to give account of our lives. Can we expect Him to welcome us into Heaven then, if we are not living to please Him now?

God understands our dilemma and knows that we are unable to meet His perfect standards. As a righteous God, He could not just overlook our sin. In His compassion He provided a way to free us from our debt by punishing His Son on the cross instead of us. “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

The Lord Jesus Christ took the punishment for our sins so that we could be made righteous before God. He “who knew no sin” bore our sins on the cross, being made “sin for us . . . that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Through the righteousness of Jesus Christ, sinners like you and I can be freed from the punishment that we deserved for our sin, and can be assured of Heaven as our final destination. Believe that Jesus Christ died in your place and rose again from the dead, and turn from your sins. Let Him erase the debt you owe and give you His gift of everlasting life.

He paid a debt He did not owe

I owed a debt I could not pay.

I needed Someone to wash my sins away.

And now I sing a brand new song,

Amazing grace, the whole day long,

For Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.

Good News Publishers

Wheaton, IL